Chicago Bears could get help in NFL playoffs from Detroit Lions' proposed rule change

The Detroit Lions are proposing an NFL rule change that could help the Chicago Bears make the playoffs.

Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn embraces Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) after a game at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill., on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. | Audrey Richardson / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NFL teams are proposing rule changes ahead of their annual owners meetings at the end of the month, and an idea from the Detroit Lions could end up helping the Chicago Bears in the playoffs.

As postseason expectations build for Ben Johnson's first season in charge, the team could earn an even higher seed under the Lions' proposal.

Detroit submitted a rule change that would make it so the seeding in the playoffs is determined by record. It would no longer guarantee that the division winners get the first four seeds, followed by three wildcards.

Also from the #Lions, a proposal to seed the playoff teams by record, regardless of berths by winning the division or securing a wild card. pic.twitter.com/mIt4Xr5vR8

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 19, 2025

Division winners would still be guaranteed a playoff spot, but if a wild card team had a better record, it would get a higher seed than a division winner with a worse record.

This makes it so the team with the better record would always get to be the home team, instead of defaulting to division winners.

In these most recent playoffs, this rule would have benefitted both the Minnesota Vikings (14-3) and Green Bay Packers (11-6). They each had better records than the three-seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers and four-seed Los Angeles Rams that both won their divisions at 10-7.

I'd like to be optimistic that the NFL playoff seeding rule change will pass, but if the current rule survived the 2014 playoffs, it's never changing. pic.twitter.com/ZT2aAchTU0

— Jeremy Reisman (@DetroitOnLion) March 19, 2025

No one is expecting the Bears to win the NFC North this season, but if they make the playoffs in Johnson's first year, a rule change like this could help them get better seeding as a wild card.

It's a way to elevate teams like the Bears that play in a tougher division, over teams that win a weaker division like the NFC South or NFC West.

The first step for Chicago is actually making the postseason. From there, this Lions propsal could make a real difference.

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